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Sicilian Island Fantasy

​A dreamy multi-active family tour in Sicily

Download a Detailed Itinerary

Our comprehensive itineraries are a one-stop-shop for all the delightful details of our carefully crafted tours, including:

A thorough daily itinerary

Details for exact accommodations

What to expect

Travel planning tips

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Fun for the whole family

Destination

Italy, Sicily

Activity

Biking, Multi-Sport

Level

Easy

Level

Perfect for the cycling newbies who already enjoy being active, or anyone who just wants to take it easy.

Pedal at a meandering pace, stopping to take pictures, savor a leisurely lunch and explore the surroundings. Enjoy quiet roads along flat and rolling terrain zigzagging through vineyards, olive groves and farmland.

Average daily distance: 35-45 miles

Terrain: flat and rolling

Our Athletic Beginner tours are perfect for those who aren’t avid cyclists, but are fit and love to exercise regularly.

On these trips, you’ll enjoy a flowing pace with plenty of time throughout the day to indulge in the local specialties, take in the local culture and enjoy the magnificent views. There will be an occasional hill, more rolling terrain and higher mileage than an Easy tour.

Average daily distance: 35-45 miles

Terrain: flat and rolling

Our guides will offer cycling clinics and one-on-one coaching in cadence, positioning and the art of shifting efficiently on rolling hills.

You love being active and cycling is your preferred way. You are in good physical condition and ride whenever you can.

Intermediate tours maintain a steady pace with opportunities to push yourself by tackling challenging climbs with great descents over stunning terrain. You’ll still have time to explore and enjoy the landscape and towns you’ll visit.

Average daily distance: 40-50 miles

Terrain: rolling with some hills

You are an avid cyclist who trains regularly, participates in bicycling events and is eager to plan their next bicycling vacation. You enjoy a vigorous ride, challenging climbs and thrilling descents.

These “Epic” and “follow the race” tours are spectacular and have plenty of classic climbs and are perfect for cyclists who covet long mileage with lots of hills and varying terrain.

Average daily distance: 45+ miles

Terrain: hilly with long climbs

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Duration

8 days / 7 nights

Bucket List: Your family bonds best when swimming, active fun, and delicious food are at the core of your vacation. Your happiest if they are learning and interacting from the local people.

Bucket List: Your family bonds best when swimming, active fun, and delicious food are at the core of your vacation. Your happiest if they are learning and interacting from the local people.

An active journey of the most important Mediterranean Island, an unsurpassed blend of humanity, culture, pristine nature, scents and colors: from the heights of Mt. Etna to the depths of the Aeolian sea, a kaleidoscope of emotions that will be hardly forgotten.

This tour is athletic beginner plus, perfect for families with active kids that love water, mountains, ice cream and fun. The rocky nature of Etna and the Aeolian Islands does not make this tour suitable for children under the age of 10.

Tour Essence

Delicious pizza feast and ice cream tasting

Visit Etna, Europe’s tallest volcano

Cycle, hike, kayak and snorkel in Sicily and the Aeolian Islands

Discover Lipari, the capital of the Aeolian Islands, and dive in it’s coves and grottoes

Learn how to sea kayak and snorkel

Visit Stromboli, location of one of three active volcanoes in Italy

Explore the fascinating ancient history of Salina

What to Expect

Terrain

​Bike: flat and hilly / Hike: sandy and rocky

Start Location

​Catania

End Location

Lipari​

Mileage

Average Daily: 16 miles (Bike), 2-3 hours (Hike)

What's Included

Once you have a trip confirmed, we will feed you a steady diet of additional pre-departure information that includes: How to train, prepare, pack and all the wonderful, inspirational and practical things you want and need to know before you go! Our Travel Advisors will be available to help plan your pre- and post-tour travel.

Confirmed tours are dates that have been selected by us that have a very high probability of reaching the minimum group size for us to run the tour and for you to receive the best Ciclismo Classico experience. These tours are confirmed as much as a year in advance, compared to our regularly scheduled tours which are confirmed around 90 days prior to departure. When you place your deposit for a confirmed tour, you have the green light to make your pre and post travel plans and even book your flight with our personal guarantee that your tour will run!

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Optional Single Supplement

If you are traveling alone, this optional single supplement will guarantee you a room to yourself at each hotel. The cost of a single room is often more than half the price of a shared room, so this additional supplement reflects that increased cost for each night over the course of the trip.

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Itinerary

Start Location

Fly Into

End Location

Fly Out Of

Catania

Welcome to Sicily! Group meets at the hotel at 9 am for introductions. We’ll discover the secret spots of this ancient city on an urban trek led by our unique local guide, Paolo “the King of Sicily”. After a delicious pizza feast and ice cream tasting, we’ll have a 20 min shuttle to our beautiful hotel at the foothill of Etna, where we can relax and find refreshment at the outdoor pool. An unforgettable musical performance will help us better understand Sicilian history, tradition and way of life.

Average Mileage

2.5 hour hike, suitable for all levels

Accommodations

Set in a little village at the foot of Mount Etna, the 4-star Villa Paradiso dell’Etna allows you to stay in a real Sicilian villa. Opened in 1929 and once frequented by renowned artists and writers, Villa Paradiso has been elegantly restored and decorated. All rooms have panoramic views of the gardens or Mount Etna. The villa boasts a cordial and helpful staff, piano bar, panoramic roof garden, wine cellar, outdoor pool, and much more!

Luxury Level4 stars

Day2

Hike Etna

An early shuttle will drop us at the base camp of mount Etna, Europe’s tallest volcano; here we meet our guide, an expert in volcanoes, that will lead us on a field trip on a totally new landscape and explain how this gentle giant sleeps and wakes up every million years; together with informative moments there will also be many fun ones. At the end of the visit we’ll move to Taormina, a town overlooking the sea, famous for its many boutiques and amazing lookout of the Greek roman theatre.

Average Mileage

Riding Terrain

Accommodations

The 4-star Hotel Villa Diodoro boasts a hillside position and an outdoor pool with panoramic sea views, a 5 minute walk from the historic center of Taormina. Rooms are air conditioned and bright.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day3

Lipari Town Stroll

Free morning in Taormina, transfer to Milazzo and hydrofoil to Lipari, capital of the Aeolian Islands, our home for the next 5 nights. Once in Lipari you can decide whether to visit the ancient village, discovering its incredible history, or take a bike ride around the island, maybe bringing your towel to stop and refresh at the best coves. Geologically, the island of Lipari is quite rugged with deep caverns, steep cliffs, and splendid views. Here you’ll find beautiful scenery, volcanoes, castles, thermal resorts, water sports, and, of course, magnificent beaches. If you love coastal views, the entire ride is one highlight after another. Because the island is so compact and quaint, it should be pedaled at a leisurely pace so as to take in all of the small villages and to observe the landscape with its fascinating geology.

Average Mileage

2 hour hike or optional 16 mile bike ride

Riding Terrain

Hike: town stroll; bike: hilly

Accommodations

The 4-star Villa Bougainville was designed with the intent of recreating a typical environment of Aeolian dwellings. All rooms are modern, soundproofed and air-conditioned and have a private terrace or balcony.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day4

Kayak Around Vulcano

A quick hydrofoil trip will bring us to Vulcano, a small volcanic island, where we’ll meet our kayaking guides that will teach us how to handle a sea kayak and lead us on a beautiful journey on the most beautiful coves. Don’t forget your snorkeling equipment!

Accommodations

The 4-star Villa Bougainville was designed with the intent of recreating a typical environment of Aeolian dwellings. All rooms are modern, soundproofed and air-conditioned and have a private terrace or balcony.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day5

Night Hike at Stromboli

Free morning, with optional visit of the archaeological museum of Lipari, one of the most important of the Mediterranean for ancient history. Mid afternoon we embark for a cruise to the conical island of Stromboli, with its round shape this Island is a perfect volcano emerging from the deep sea. Late in the evening we’ll hike to the top to watch the fireworks of constant eruptions in the dark, then return with a night boat at our base.

Riding Terrain

Rolling hills

Accommodations

The 4-star Villa Bougainville was designed with the intent of recreating a typical environment of Aeolian dwellings. All rooms are modern, soundproofed and air-conditioned and have a private terrace or balcony.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day6

Snorkeling at Panarea

Another day on a boat, this time we’ll have our private boat sail around the Island of Lipari and dive in coves and grottoes looking for the huge variety of fish and shells that live in those shallow waters. In the afternoon, hands-on cooking lesson to learn some typical local dishes, like pane cunzatu (a kind of huge bruschetta).

Riding Terrain

Rolling hills

Accommodations

The 4-star Villa Bougainville was designed with the intent of recreating a typical environment of Aeolian dwellings. All rooms are modern, soundproofed and air-conditioned and have a private terrace or balcony.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day7

Salina by Bike

Today we take a private boat to the island of Salina. Interspersed with a stop to take a dip or two, we have a relaxing boat ride with our native seamen through calm, turquoise blue Mediterranean waters. On our bikes, we explore Salina’s beauty as well as its fascinating ancient history. Salina’s ancient Greek name, Didyme (twin) derives from the shape of the island: two reliefs separated by a saddle. Its present name, Salina, originates from a coastal lake that was once utilized as a “salt pan.” Situated along the Lingua point, it has a depth of a few meters and extends close to two hectares. The coastal cordons encircling it are formed by the strong marine currents that cross the channel between Salina. After our short bike ride, we are off to the cove featured in the movie “Il Postino.” In Salina, we’ll have a Aeolian lunch and the best granita!

Accommodations

The 4-star Villa Bougainville was designed with the intent of recreating a typical environment of Aeolian dwellings. All rooms are modern, soundproofed and air-conditioned and have a private terrace or balcony.

Luxury Level4 stars

Day8

Arrivederci!

Around 8:30 am after breakfast we leave from the island of Lipari and offer a group hydrofoil (1 hour) to Milazzo, followed by a group shuttle (2 hours) to Catania airport for international connections or to continue your travels to Italy and beyond.